


Riding With the Devil

by Duchesse



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, M/M, Reader-Insert, Reader-Interactive, Romance, Spoilers, gender-neutral, i guess maybe idk????, this takes place during that time in lestallum before seeing titan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-22
Updated: 2017-12-22
Packaged: 2019-02-18 08:23:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13096209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Duchesse/pseuds/Duchesse
Summary: You persuade Ardyn to let you ride with him on the trip to the Archaean. It doesn’t go as you had rehearsed in your head.[Ardyn Izunia/You].





	Riding With the Devil

**Author's Note:**

> slides in. ayyy. i'm here to spread my filthy reader insert fics to ffxv. strap your asses in!
> 
> if you enjoyed this, please let me know! always open to requests here, or tumblr!

“Are… you serious?”

“No way! You’re just asking for something bad to happen.”

“Not gonna happen.”

“Of all things for you suggest…”

True, of all things for you to suggest, this was by far the most reckless yet. Despite the situation you were putting yourself in, you couldn’t help but find humor in being surrounded by four grown men donning black from head-to-toe during one of the most notoriously blistering times of year in Lestallum.

They circled you, leaning entirety too close as they whispered among each other. Every so often, one would cast their eyes towards the patient, simpering man some feet away. No doubt Ardyn was aware the hushed chatter was about him, he didn’t give the impression of being a fool.

In fact, he gave you the impression of knowing that you knew that he knew too much and made a display of flaunting it in some underhanded way. Still, you couldn’t help but feel fascinated by the eccentric man.

“Whaddya want me to do? Do you seriously think my ass can fit between Gladio and Ignis? Please,” you scoffed, scuffing the tip of your boot on the concrete, eyes rolling away from their piercing gazes.

“We’ll readjust,” Ignis offered. “I’ll drive. Noct, Prompto, and Gladio can have the back. You’ll take the front seat.”

“Wha–talk about cramped! Let’s just throw Gladio out!” Prompto suggested, sputtering as Gladio hooked a broad arm around his neck and tightened his grip. “I-I’m kidding! I’m kidding! Uncle! Uncle!”

“Better idea,” Gladio piped-up, smirking in satisfaction as Prompto staggered away with greedy gasps. He turned towards you with a twinkle in those dark eyes. “You could just sit on my lap the entire way. Shouldn’t be an issue on a day like today.”

“No!” the chorus of replies came at once, earning a dispirited sigh from the larger man as his shoulders rolled forward.

“Man, you guys are a buzzkill.”

It was Noctis’ turn now. He stood before you with that expressionless mask of his, yet there was something in the way he teetered on his feet, eyes never straying from yours that conveyed his concern perfectly. To have a prince show any ounce of worry towards your little ole’ commoner self was a dream come true.

Too bad he was betrothed.

“I’m not really getting why you’re wanting to do this,” Noctis admitted, arms tight across his chest. “He gives me huge creeper vibes. Besides, he turned down me riding with him…”

“Look. I don’t know how to exactly explain myself here,” you started, raising your palms in attempt to deescalate the tension. “But, you guys are pretty… um… imposing, I guess. Maybe I can get somewhere with intel.”

“ _That’s_  your great idea?” Gladio said, derisively. “Thinking you can get info just because you’re not cutting through monsters? Unreal.”

“I dunno, Gladdy,” Prompto chimed, skipping towards the group with a thoughtful look, obviously having recovered from the headlock. “Maybe there’s something to it? Like, Ardyn turned down Noctis because, well, I think everyone knows who Noct is.”

“It’s like throwing meat to wolves,” Gladio rebuffed. “It’s a bad idea.”

“I second that thought.” Ignis said.

You wet your lower lip and looked towards the prince once again. Even though majority ruled unfavorably, the only person you needed approval from was Noctis. He still hadn’t moved a muscle, though now his brow seemed heavier–far more troubled than previously.

“Noct, I don’t trust Ardyn, either. But, we’re hardly making big paces in this journey. This could be a good chance,” you reasoned, taking a tentative step closer towards him. “It’s just a few hours. It might work.”

“And if it doesn’t?” Noctis asked neutrally, arms slowly unwinding to rest at his sides. “What then?”

A grin blossomed across your face. “You have my number. How many people can boast that?”

“Fine, just don’t wait for things to get bad if they’re going downhill,” Noctis relented at last, coaxing an even brighter smile from you that reached his own face. “Keep in touch.”

At the sight of your group unwinding from one another, Ardyn let out a delighted noise and walked forward confidently.

“Are you all quite done yet? We’ve already lost a fair bit of precious daylight,” he reminded, extending an arm high towards the sun with a grand flourish. “I don’t know about you all, but travelling by nightfall is nary a thought in my mind.”

“Yeah, we’re done,” you said, coming to a stop at the passenger side of his car. “We’ll be ready to leave under the condition that you let me ride with you.”

“Pardon me?” Ardyn said incredulously, arm rigidly aloft. “Is that what held your fascinations for so long? My, I don’t know whether or be humbled by this or…”

You shrugged him off dismissively, perching a hip against the car door as you gestured towards the Regalia with a nod. “There’s not enough room. Anywhere they go, I go.”

“Oh?” Ardyn offered a challenging smile. “And what of your previous excursions with them? It’s obvious enough that something has worked itself out in the past.”

With a grimace, you bobbed your head in agreement, catching sight of the four men watching anxiously from the car. “Yeah. It takes a while to get used to the trunk, but it is pretty roomy compared to most cars.”

Ardyn lifted his eyebrows, lips falling agape for but a moment before snapping shut. He fussed with the rim of his hat before removing it.

“Surely, you jest.”

“Do you seriously think I am?” you rebuked. “They’re a load of heathens. No compassion in their hearts. But, you give the feeling of being nicer than them. So, help me out here and give me a lift.”

The cards were dealt and you both were playing winning hands. You couldn’t boast good bluffing skills, but Ardyn was in a situation where it would reflect badly on him to propose anything else. 

“Yes, very well,” Ardyn replied with an airy laugh. It came as a surprise to you, however, when he rounded the car towards you and pulled the door open. With a sweeping bow, he waited for you to take a seat before returning to his own side. “It would be rather unbecoming of me to not help those in need. Please buckle yourself in, my dear. It would be a terrible shame, and a terrible loss if something should happen to you.”

You took him up on that request hastily, tightening the seat-belt until you were sure you were cutting off circulation to your waist.

Not even five feet from where he had parked and you were already regretting every thought, and every life choice up until that point. God, you hated yourself.

“Uh, so, it’ll take a few days to reach the Archaean. Where are we heading in the meantime?” you asked with a newfound timidness. Small talk was not one of your best qualities.

Ardyn kept his eyes pointed ahead at the road, expression at ease and fingers lax at the wheel. “Just a little stop about an hour or two ahead. We’ll seek refuge for the night there and continue onward in the morning.”

“Sounds reasonable..” you said grudgingly, eyes drifting towards the side-mirror to catch sight of the Regalia some ways behind. That alone prompted you to peer across your shoulder, face scrunching against the winds whipping at your face to see that they were even farther behind than you anticipated.

Who the hell was driving?

“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” Ardyn tutted, reaching up with a hand to fasten his hat more securely on his head. With something of a crooked smile, he peered towards you. “Falling behind already, are they? Did I, or did I not ask for them to keep up? We’re going to have quite a bit of trouble if it’s like this the entire trip.”

You adjusted yourself in the seat, facing forward once again with your fingers wrenching the seat belt. “We could slow down and wait for them. We don’t want for them to get lost.”

Ardyn merely chuckled. “Afraid not, my dear. As I’ve already told you, I don’t take to the roads under the veil of night. If worst comes to worst, they’ll simply need to find their own way.”

“Kinda contradictory,” you prodded. “Don’t they need you or something to get there?”

“Why yes, yes they do. Quite astute, aren’t you?” 

You rotated your jaw, biting back any commentary that could earn you trip straight down the hillsides passing as green blurs. At that point, the Regalia had faded from sight entirely, and the winding roads Ardyn chose to take left you with a lingering feeling that it had been his intention.

“Isn’t this just splendid?” 

Ardyn’s voice roused you from your thoughts, reeling your eyes towards him as he leaned back in his seat, one arm balanced atop the door. You couldn’t get a read on the guy. Was he bad news? Was he just a bizarre traveler?

“It isn’t often the days are so comfortable. Lestallum was positively unbearable, but a quaint town nonetheless. The welcoming culture there is something to be desired.”

You weren’t sure how to reply to that. Hell, you weren’t sure how to reply to him at all. One moment you felt as though you had an upper hand, the next you were a reclusive tortoise too afraid of the world beyond its shell.

“Yeah, for sure,” you replied meekly. “Makes me wonder what it’ll be like… wherever we’re going.”

“Oh my, you poor dear. You’re unaware?” Ardyn offered a sympathetic smile. “The Archaean rests in an unforgiving place. The ground itself is scorching and begging for reprieve.”

“Soooo, really fucking hot?”

“Ha, ha-ha, to put it simply, yes.”

For the first time since leaving Lestallum, he turned his attention towards you fully, a daring stunt while driving but he seemed unconcerned. “I’m rather… surprised they didn’t already inform you on that.”

“I don’t know if they were even aware.”

Ardyn made a noise similar to a hum and looked ahead once again. Did he know something that you didn’t? He didn’t seem to believe your thoughts that they were as ignorant as you in this pursuit. You knew better than to let him get under your skin, but damn, he managed to anyway.

“So, tell me, will you be at their aid in this endeavor as well?” The question was innocent enough, if not a little invasive from his pressing tone. “I could only assume so since… you were so persistent to follow along.”

“I–” you paused, fitting your lips into a tight line. Truthfully, you were no champion on the battlefield. Navigation and grabbing intel from locations you had visited was more your forte. A sword had never made its way into your grasp, and a gun was useless in the hands of someone without aim.

You couldn’t believe you were just now realizing this. “I… I don’t know. I usually help however I can. I doubt they’ll let me go far with this.”

A shiver rocketed down your spine when you felt his lithe fingers rest securely atop your shoulder, offering what you assumed to be a caring squeeze. You weren’t sure where this was coming from, or how to take it, honestly.

“Such a pity. You care so deeply for those who do not see your enormous potential,” he said in low tones that you found oddly mesmerizing. “Perhaps you’re helping the wrong side.”

“What?” 

“Nothing–ah! And look! Here we are at our haven!” 

True to his word, he pulled the car into the outpost that you had visited with the others numerous times. How was it that the roads seemed so different this time? You merely sat in stupefied silence, only noticing Ardyn once he had got out of the car and leaned on the door at your side.

Finding his face so near to yours was jarring to say the least, forcing you to lean as far away from him as you could, prying a laugh from his lips.

“Forgive me, my dear. I did not mean to startle you,” he tipped his hat at you while straightened his back. “I’ll go on ahead to pay for tonight. Perhaps you should check on if they’ll be along soon?”

In a display you were beginning to become custom to seeing, Ardyn’s coat billowed about as he spun and walked away, leaving you to your thoughts.

As you fished the smartphone from your pocket, it abrupt to life; buzzing and chiming more times than you could count. All of them from the gang.

Through your astonishment and confusion, you swiped across the screen to accept a call from Prompto.


End file.
